Pretty Tulips and then some sad news...

Did you know that Tulips stand up straighter if you place a copper penny in the vase?
Flowers arrived from a friend...
Lovely daughter popped the penny in the water and arranged the tulips.
Thanks darling!

My sister mentioned at her Garden Club, when introducing the guest speaker Des Kennedy,

 that "Viagra would make tulips stand at attention"

the audience snickered and whispered excitedly amongst themselves...

I wonder if this really works.

(I think some of the audience might have had access to some of those little blue pills!)

Tulips ~ Day 4 

still standing...

why not try the penny trick and see if it works for you.

Spring tulips are for sale and right now they are very cheap.

The Bungalow Hostess cannot be without them

as they raise my spirits until my garden flowers can take over.

Did I mention that our cleaning gal has returned?

We really missed her visits.

She's wonderful and I love what she does to help keep our Humble Bungalow looking presentable.

But I digress.

A friend who lives up island and I had lunch together and we were enjoying 

our food when she started to weep...

it seemed sudden and I was rather perplexed

what was moving her to tears?

as menopause affects us all so differently I didn't over react

(I can cry at the drop of a hat)

I offered her a tissue and waited...

she caught her breath, visibly shaken 

she told me her husband has been diagnosed with leukemia....

BUT

she said if you have to get leukemia get the kind my husband has 

(?)

CLL a type of chronic leukemia which has a longer time to develop

but it will get worse eventually and require treatment.

He may have 5 to 20 years before that happens

In the mean time he is scheduled for an MRI, a CAT scan, and various other tests...

they have quite the challenge ahead

and there are lots of friends who will help and be there to support them through this journey.

It's a shock for sure for all of us.

Life can be so fragile

it really shakes things up hearing of a loved one who is diagnosed with this wretched disease

and all I keep thinking is

"it's not fair"

Adele's CD 21 

has been getting a lot of play

 gorgeous and talented

she's perking things up here

I just cannot get enough of her sound...

in case you haven't heard 

 look and listen...

I love that YOU come by 

and do me the honour of your company...

I'm

 an ordinary woman 

with a desire to write

about the mundane

 the serious

and 

the simple things in life

learning to accept my limitations

moving forward

nudging closer to 60 

 feeling gratitude in every pore of my being

and possibly learning to be comfortable in my own skin one picture at a time.

XO

Hostess

Hug and hold tight someone you love today.

Re ~ addressing denim with yellow and a lemon cake recipe by request.

I have had this Blue Willis Danish denim jacket for years.
It was an "investment piece" so I have never parted with it
but I must admit that it has not gotten out of the closet much...
until I rethought what I'd wear with it.

I found the scarf and thought that yellow would be a cheerful shade to pair with denim...

then I found a simple cotton U neck T ~ shirt

and it gave me a psychological boost.

Sure I'll still resort to my basic white tanks and Tees underneath the jacket 

and I'll probably wrap this scarf around my neck to perk them up.

I remembered that lovely daughter made these earrings for me several birthdays ago

and they are perfect with the scarf, T~ shirt and jacket.

I love how girly I feel when I put on dangly ear ornamentation.

It's an instant shot of feminine charm.

I bought some new foundation garments

lingerie 

think loads of lace...

you'll need to use your imagination!

I've decided that images of these will remain modestly hidden.

Valisere European Romantic Emotion and Bali 

bras and panties

in shades of white and ecru...

It was long overdue,

my favourite lingerie shop has closed it's doors

 as the English Gal who owned it retired.

I picked up my birthday freebie from Sephora.

Nice that some companies will still give away something for free.

Happy Birthday Sugar 

(lip treatment and gloss)

by Fresh

These are creamy and full of moisturizers.

Fresh is a familiar company name...

I was given the Fresh Brown Sugar Scrub a few Christmases ago and it has become a Hostess shower staple.

I love how fresh I feel after using the scrub. 

It gets my circulation revved up and my skins feels amazing and soft after using it.

(just remember to wipe the tub out after using it or someone's going to slip!)

I have been feeling rather sniffly lately.

My doctor thinks that I have developed allergies...

seasonal air born pollens are the likely culprits.

 Huge amount of empathy now for allergy sufferers...

really had no idea what a drag it would be to be sneezing and stuffed up round the clock.

My eyes have been puffy as a result

not a good look

 so I had to take action.

Sephora 

de ~ puffing roller to the rescue.

So far it's working...

if you suffer from seasonal allergies what have you discovered that helps keep the symptoms at bay?

Please share your thoughts and ideas 

I would love to hear what works for you as it may help me.

Donna asked for the lemon cake recipe 

the one I served at the recent "Tea in the Afternoon"

I have photographed the card and it can be enlarged by clicking on it...

I hope you'll enjoy it!

I used a larger spring form pan than suggested

because the first time I made this recipe it took much longer to cook!

so be prepared to cook it longer if you use the 9 inch pan.

Bon Appetit!

Home cooking, a caterer's web launch and robots reading blogs!

Mr. HB is busy fixing up my laundry room and the basement
and to keep him going I have been indulging his palate with tasty dinners.

His new favourite is Giada's Chicken Cacciatore...

Served atop spaghetti noodles

Here's the method...

in pictures.

This made a lot so invite friends or family over

or be prepared to enjoy leftovers.

Mr. HB raved about this dish and he mentioned that he thought it was better the second evening!

BTW my friend Julie the talented caterer has her website up and running.

I have posted a picture on the side bar you can easily check it out by clicking on the picture.

Bon appetit!

Is anyone else frustrated with Blogger making me prove that "I am not a robot" when commenting on blogs?

I disabled that feature on my blog a long time ago

 and those were the days when one word was enough and now we are asked to type two!

I wonder if that has reduced the amount of comments on certain blogs.

Have your blog comments dwindled?

Why would a robot read blogs anyhow?

Blogger are you listening

or are you a robot?

:-)

The weather is not Springlike or warm 

and when I was away it snowed....

and that was during our Sun Salutations at the island Yoga class !

my Christmas cactus is blooming too...

Abkhazi Garden Pilgrimage

Oh I adore gardens of a certain age...
those that have great bones and mature plantings.
Historic Gardens of significance are few and far between in our neck of the woods.
One garden that never fails to inspire is the Abkhazi Gardens situated on a rocky plot of land in a Garry Oak meadow.
This space is such a gem and a favorite spot for a meander and a cup of tea.

A friend and I walked over and met for lunch in the tearoom before touring the magnificent grounds.

Lunch was a  delicious hot pot of Abkhazi Tea and salad Nicoise served on fine china in the sun filled living room that once was the home to Prince and Princess Abkhazi.

This garden will come alive in the next month when the  Rhododendrons and Azaleas bloom.

Here we see the "bones" of the garden.

The water feature or pond is home to two elderly turtles.

I have seen the turtles basking in the sunshine on a sunny day.

Wisteria 

gnarled

ancient and vast.

Terrace adjacent to the living room which serves as a tearoom.

The Land Conservancy owns and runs the garden and they are now serving breakfast as well as tea and lunch.

On a warm sunny afternoon this spot is a lovely place to spend time.

It's an oasis of loveliness.

The terrain is rocky and there are many levels

the paths lead the visitor on...

and there are many spots to sit and observe.

The Hellebores were putting on quite a show for us.

a simple euphorbia looks bright against the rocks

creeping plants hug the rocks and grow in very little soil

A rare Tasmanian bush with purple seed pods

the volunteer opened one up to show us 

She gave me several and I am going to try and grow one.

I'll need lots of luck as I do not have a knack with seeds.

The day we chose to wander the grounds started out as a sunny one but quickly turned grey and overcast.

You'll have to trust me when I tell you how amazing this place really is 

as the images that I have taken really do not do it justice.

I posted about this magical place a few years ago and you can see it here in full bloom.

Gardens... should be like lovely, well-shaped girls:  

all curves, secret corners, unexpected deviations, 

seductive surprises and then still more curves. 

 ~H.E. Bates, A Love of Flowers

Must run along as I am busy busy

going on a wee adventure

I'll be back soon.

Tea in the afternoon...

Invite a dozen women
prepare some simple trays of fruit
make stuffed eggs
bake a lemon cake
buy some pretty pink roses and napkins
set the table with flowery patterned  china
boil the kettle
and make the tea...

Lavender Rose China by Royal Albert

Silvery Lace silverware by Rogers

The eggs stayed in the fridge until the first guest arrived

by gosh they were popular

I made a dozen eggs which when halved and stuffed made 24

they are so retro and I make them often because people seem to love them.

fresh fruit

even ladies who diet indulge...

flowers 

in the "powder room"

just because...

OOTD

salmon top

black tights

ballet flats

scarf

an easy outfit to move about while serving tea

now try to get a word in edgewise 

when you've invited a dozen women to tea!

It must have been a success because they came at 2:00 and left at 5:00.

Let's get this weekend rolling...